THE VILLAGE OF TENGANAN IN BALI CAREFULLY PRESERVES A CULTURAL LEGACY DATING BACK TO THE MAJAPAHIT EMPIRE, AND OFFERS A UNIQUE GLIMPSE INTO THE LIVES OF THE FIRST BALINESE. WORDS AND PHOTOS BY ED BAILITIS

Midway through each year, an undercurrent of intense excitement surrounds the unique Balinese village of Tenganan. A buffalo is ceremoniously slaughtered, while beautiful textile heirlooms are displayed in the open. An ancient wooden ferris wheels is specially constructed. And, perhaps most ominously, strips of thorny pandanas leaves are piled up, ready for the combat to begin.

All the action is in preparation for the village’s fifth-month celebrations.

For hundreds of years, Tenganan has maintained its cultural authenticity through daily, weekly and monthly ritual and ceremony according to strict customary law. For the visitor, a visit to one of Bali’s most pristine villages is a glimpse of Bali as it once was – a time capsule preserving the lives of the original Balinese.

Ancient culture

Tenganan is a walled communal village that has preserved its animistic cultural practices for hundreds of years. The village lies at the head of a narrow valley at the base of Bali’s sacred Mount Agung, about 3km into the hills from the eastern coastal holiday resort of Candi Dasa.

Locals call the Tenganese Bali Aga, or Bali Mula, meaning original Balinese. As such, their culture predates the Majapahit Empire (1294 to 1478) from which most mainstream Balinese claim cultural and spiritual descent. The 300 or so members of Tenganan communally own land that spreads far beyond the surrounding hills. They are reputed to be among the richest tribes on Bali.

You might not think Tenganan was so wealthy and socially complex at first sight. In this non-descript walled village, there are no streets or cars, merely two rows of houses doubling as shops, which face each other across an ancient village green.

Magical cloth

Tenganan is best known for its traditional cloth, called Kamben Gringsing, which translates as both “flaming cloths” and “against sicknesses”. This peculiar double-ikat cloth – only woven elsewhere in Patola, India and Guatemala, Central America – is characterized by its distinctive colors. A group of four gringsing cloths takes up to eight years, and each piece can fetch as much as Rp32 million (US$3,494). However, certain gringsing heirlooms are not for sale.

An element of mystique surrounds gringsing. In the 1930s, Miguel Covarru-bias wrote in Island of Bali that kamben gringsing was once dyed in sacrificial human blood and possessed magical powers. In turn, the wearer was said to be protected from black magic. Many mainstream Balinese still avoid Tenganan today, fearing black magic.

Clearly defined social structures forbid outsiders marrying into the Tenganan community. Until 1925, marriage in Tenganan was only permitted within the village. Upon relaxation of this law, a village man could marry a single woman from one of the mainstream Balinese high castes without losing his right to live in the village. A villager breaking any of Tenganan’s laws is considered to be breaking divine law. The result is banishment for life to the outer village, to become a member of the organization of the fallen.

More than any other village in Bali, Tenganan performs rituals on a daily basis, to guarantee the spiritual purity and balance of the entire community. The most popular by far and a highlight of the fifth Tenganan month is the thrilling mekare-kare (shield) pandanas fighting.